Chapter 10

EPOV

"Miss Swan will see you now." The meek assistant mumbled as I swept past her. I could tell I made her nervous; her hands were wrapped in themselves as she kept her eyes down. She was cute in the awkward, fifth grade way. I knew that what I was doing was wrong on some levels, but I didn't care. I wasn't about to let Bella get away without a fight, and if I had to lie to achieve my goal, then so be it.

Her back was to me as I positioned myself in the chair in front of her desk that would be perfect for the element of surprise. "Mr. John…." Her voice trailed off as she made eye contact with me and her face showed utter surprise. "What are you doing here?" The words seemed to fall out of her mouth as she tried to squeak out the simple question.

My smile was coy, "Now, is that any way to treat a perspective client?" I winked at her as I leaned in closely to her desk. Her face readjusted and she licked her lips, pulling excessively on her bottom lip, sliding it against her teeth. I felt my heart race quicken; I am one hundred percent sure that she had no idea the effect she had on me. Her face was inquisitive as she stared at me, every part of me wanted to know what she was thinking, but for some reason, she was harder to read than most people. She always kept me guessing, she never fully did what you expected her to do.

"What are you doing here?" Her voice was powerful as her posture straightened and she clasped her hands in front of her. I smiled at her attempt to be intimidating, she wasn't fooling me, but she did look attractive when she was assertive; that was defiantly something to make a mental note for the future.

"I was in the neighborhood." I tossed my hand to the side as she bit her bottom lip. It was true I was in the neighborhood; I was here to see her. She hadn't been returning my phone calls or calling to thank me for my flowers I had been sending her. After this was all said and done, I might as well have bought stock in FDT.

"Maybe, it's because I didn't want to see you. Did you ever think of that?" She spat out her venom coated words as she squinted her eyes at me. "You think you just not call to break a date and then I am expected to just let you right back in, let it go right back to the way it was before. Well, I don't know who you think you are but it doesn't happen like that. No, sir." Her gestures were exaggerated as she leaned forward onto the desk.

I felt my anger increase with every word she said, but I had to remember she didn't know any better. She hadn't been exposed to my world, she knew no better; she knew nothing of late nights, disappearances, or empty excuses. I inhaled deeply; I was not going to let her get the best of me.

"Bella, look, I made a mistake. Can't you just accept my apology?" I was already exasperated, even though I hadn't said more than a few sentences about the subject. I so badly wanted to tell her what I was, what I was involved in, but I wasn't sure she could be trusted all the way. She was different than most girls, she wasn't superficial, and she was complicated in every sense of the word.

Bella rolled her eyes at my poor plea. "Do you think that it can happen that easily? You have a lot of making up to do, Cullen. A lot of making up to do." Her lips upturned into a smile as she winked at me. It was then I knew I had succeeded. "So, does this mean that you'll come to lunch with me?" I stood up and offered her my hand. Her smile faded a bit as she shook her head, "I am so sorry, but I can't. We are preparing for a sample sale, and I just can't leave work. You understand, right?" I shrugged my shoulders in response, "Of course, I understand. Dinner, then?" I held my breath, hoping for the right answer, hoping for a yes.

Bella batted her eyelashes as she gazed at me, dazzling me with every mannerism she possessed; "Of course, Edward, I would love to. Pick me up at 8?"

The small talk that followed was awkward, neither of us really knowing what to say. Even though we had only been separate for a few days, it felt like an eternity. I gracefully made my exit, promising to be there at eight sharp. As I left, I started to rack my brain for how I was going to explain to her my true profession.